Elephant West project space by Liddicoat & Goldhill opens in disused petrol station

In west London a disused petrol station has been renovated into an industrial style project space by architecture studio Liddicoat & Goldhill. Named ‘Elephant West’, the gallery is a physical manifestation of the visual culture publication Elephant.
The space is a canvas for showcasing emerging artistic talent, ‘environmental takeovers’, immersive experiences and creative programming. High ceilings in the main project space reach the height of the original petrol station and the architecture’s industrial design serves to break down the stiffness of the traditional commercial white cube gallery – the exterior is clad with a pixelated Elefant galvanised steel scaffold planking with vast industrial roller shutter door openings.
The exterior facade and entrance to Elephant West.
Remnants of the site’s original purpose have been preserved and celebrated in different ways – the petrol pumps have been sprayed white and enclosed behind four giant polycarbonate columns, while manhole covers and concrete bollards highlighted with contrasting epoxy coatings.
‘Our design exposes the latent architectural potential of a derelict, utilitarian building. It also resurrects the foundation myth of White City, which gained its name from dozens of white-painted temporary pavilion-like structures built from the 1908 Franco-British Exhibition,’ say architects Liddicoat & Goldhill.
Fuel cafe at Elephant West gallery.
‘Elephant’s tagline is “Life Through Art” and, in keeping with that, the work produced at Elephant West will resonate thematically with the concerns of the wider world rather than the narrower interests of the ‘art world’. Elephant West will turn ordinary life into cutting-edge art,’ says Robert Shore, creative director of Elephant who has spearheaded the project with Becca Pelly-Fry, head curator.
The first exhibition, ‘Dipping Sauce’, is an example of Elephant’s interactive and energetic approach. Huge photographs by west London-based Maisie Cousins show hyper-saturated macro imagery of food, insects, plants and nostalgic objects related to the experience of eating as part of a series of works that celebrate the joy and ceremony of eating, alongside which runs a programme of talks and workshops.
West London is currently experiencing a cultural renaissance, with the former BBC Television Centre redevelopment as an iconic centre piece, the RCA recently opening a White City campus and now Elephant West has jumped upon this new creative wave around White City, with its project space, Fuel café and bar, workstation hub, and shop inside it that will draw people in for many different reasons.
INFORMATION
For more information visit the Liddicoat & Goldhill website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
Wild sauna, anyone? The ultimate guide to exploring deep heat in the UK outdoors
‘Wild Sauna’, a new book exploring the finest outdoor establishments for the ultimate deep-heat experience in the UK, has hit the shelves; we find out more about the growing trend
-
Highlights from the transporting Cruise 2026 shows
The Cruise 2026 season began yesterday with a Chanel show at Lake Como, heralding the start of a series of jet-setting, destination runway shows from fashion’s biggest houses
-
Behind the design of national pavilions in Venice: three studios to know
Designing the British, Swiss and Mexican national pavilions at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 are three outstanding studios to know before you go
-
The UK AIDS Memorial Quilt will be shown at Tate Modern
The 42-panel quilt, which commemorates those affected by HIV and AIDS, will be displayed in Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in June 2025
-
Meet the Turner Prize 2025 shortlisted artists
Nnena Kalu, Rene Matić, Mohammed Sami and Zadie Xa are in the running for the Turner Prize 2025 – here they are with their work
-
‘Humour is foundational’: artist Ella Kruglyanskaya on painting as a ‘highly questionable’ pursuit
Ella Kruglyanskaya’s exhibition, ‘Shadows’ at Thomas Dane Gallery, is the first in a series of three this year, with openings in Basel and New York to follow
-
The art of the textile label: how British mill-made cloth sold itself to Indian buyers
An exhibition of Indo-British textile labels at the Museum of Art & Photography (MAP) in Bengaluru is a journey through colonial desire and the design of mass persuasion
-
Artist Qualeasha Wood explores the digital glitch to weave stories of the Black female experience
In ‘Malware’, her new London exhibition at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, the American artist’s tapestries, tuftings and videos delve into the world of internet malfunction
-
Ed Atkins confronts death at Tate Britain
In his new London exhibition, the artist prods at the limits of existence through digital and physical works, including a film starring Toby Jones
-
Tom Wesselmann’s 'Up Close' and the anatomy of desire
In a new exhibition currently on show at Almine Rech in London, Tom Wesselmann challenges the limits of figurative painting
-
A major Frida Kahlo exhibition is coming to the Tate Modern next year
Tate’s 2026 programme includes 'Frida: The Making of an Icon', which will trace the professional and personal life of countercultural figurehead Frida Kahlo